CHAPTER XII
_Tara_
I must revert now to those moments in the tower room when Tarranodissolved the isolation barrage which Wolfgar had thrown around us.Georg escaped, as I have recounted. Tarrano--there in the towerroom--rendered me unconscious. I came to myself on the broad divan andfound Elza bending over me.
I sat up, dizzily, with the room reeling.
"Jac! Jac, dear----" She made me lie back, until I could feel the bloodreturning to my clammy face; and the room steadied, and the clanging ofthe gongs in my ears died away.
"I--why, I'm--all right," I gasped. And I lay there, clinging to herhand. Dear little Elza! In that moment of relief that I had come to mysenses, she could not hide the love which even now was unspoken betweenus. Tarrano! I lay there weak and faint; but with the pressure of Elza'shand, I did not fear that this Tarrano could win her from me.
Wolfgar was standing across the room from us. He came forward.
"You did not die," he said; and smiled. "I told her you would not die."
It was now morning. Wolfgar and Elza told me I had been unconscious somehours. We were still imprisoned as before in the tower. Georg hadescaped with Maida, they said; or at least, they hoped so. And theydescribed the burning of the other tower. The city had been in aturmoil. It still was; I could hear now the shouts of the crowd outside.And turning as I lay there, through the casement I could see theblackened, still smoking ruins of Maida's tower; the broken ironterrace; the spider bridge melted away, hanging loose and dangling likean aimless pendulum.
The latest news, Elza and Wolfgar could not give me. The instrument roomof our tower had been disconnected by Tarrano when he left some hoursbefore. As they said it, we heard a familiar buzz; then the drone of anannouncer's voice. Tarrano's guard had doubtless observed my recoveryand had had orders to throw current into our instruments. Strange man,this Tarrano! He wished the news spread before us again. Confident ofhis own dominance over every crisis, he wanted Elza and me to hear it asit came from the discs.
We went to the instrument room. I found myself weak, but quiteuninjured. Elza left us there, and went to prepare food which I neededto strengthen me.
The public events of those hours and days following, I have recounted asGeorg saw them and took part in them in Washington. We observed them,here in the tower, with alternate hopes and fears. Our life ofimprisonment went on much as before. Occasionally, Tarrano visited us,always making us sit like children before him, while at his ease hereclined on our divan.
But he would never give us much real information; the man always was anenigma.
"Your friend Georg has a wonderful plan," he announced to us ironicallyearly one evening. He smiled his caustic smile. "You have seen thetape?"
"Yes," I said. It was Georg's plan to address with Maida, the publics ofEarth, Venus and Mars.
Tarrano nodded. "He and the Princess are going to convince everyone thatI am an impostor."
I did not answer that; and abruptly he chuckled. "That would beunfortunate for me--if they could do that. Do you think they'll be ableto?"
"I hope so," I said.
He laughed openly. "Of course. But they will not. That long note of mineto your government--you read it, naturally. But you didn't read in it mysecret instructions to my agents in Washington, did you? Well, they werethere in it--my commands--the letters ending its words made anothermessage."
He was amused at our discomfiture. "Simple enough? Yet really anintricate code in itself. It made the phrasing of the main note a littledifficult to compose, that was all." He sat up with his accustomed snapof alertness, and his face turned grim. "Georg will never address hisaudience. Nor the Princess--she will never appear before those sendingmirrors. I have seen to that." Again he was chuckling. "No, no, I couldnot let them do a thing like that. They might turn people against me."
Elza began indignantly: "You--you are----"
His gesture checked her. "Your brother is quite safe, Lady Elza. And thePrincess Maida also. Indeed, they are on the point of falling in lovewith each other. Natural! And perfectly right. It is as I would haveit."
His strong brown fingers were rubbing each other with his satisfaction."Curious, Lady Elza--how fortunate I am in all my plans."
"I don't think you are," I said. "Our government has you a prisonerhere. They didn't withdraw the patrol as you demanded, did they?"
He frowned a trifle. "No. That was too bad. I rather hoped they would.It would have been a stupid thing for them to do--but still, I almostthought they'd do it."
I shook my head. "What they will do is sweep down here and overwhelmyou."
"You think so?"
"Yes."
He shifted himself to a more comfortable position. "They are playing fortime--so that when I fail to produce the model as I agreed, then thepublic will realize I am not to be trusted."
"Exactly," I said.
"Well, I am playing for time, also."
He seemed so willing to discuss the thing that I grew bolder.
"What have you to gain by playing for time?" I demanded.
He stared. "You would question me, Jac Hallen? How absurd!" He looked atElza, as though to share with her his amazement at my temerity.
Wolfgar said suddenly to Tarrano: "You will gain nothing."
Tarrano's face went impassive. I understood him better now; that cold,inscrutable look often concealed his strongest emotions. He said evenly:
"I should prefer you not to address me, Wolfgar. A traitor such asyou--the sound of your voice offends me."
It struck me then as very strange--as it had for days before--thatTarrano should have failed to punish Wolfgar. I would have expecteddeath; least of all, that Tarrano would have allowed Wolfgar to livehere in the tower, in comparative ease and comfort. Tarrano's words nowanswered my unspoken questions. He was not looking at Wolfgar, but atElza.
"You, Wolfgar--deserve death. You know why I cannot kill you? Why I letyou stay here in the tower?" A faint, almost wistful smile parted histhin lips; he did not take his eyes from Elza.
"I am greatly handicapped, Wolfgar. The Lady Elza here would not like tohave me put you to death. She would not even care to have me mistreatyou. She is very tender hearted." He raised a deprecating hand. "Ah,Lady Elza, does that surprise you? You never told me I must be lenientwith this traitor? Of course not."
"I----" Elza began, but he stopped her.
"You see, Lady Elza, I have already learned to obey you." He was smilingvery gently. "Learned to obey even your unspoken commands."
I wondered how much of this attitude might be sincere, and how muchcalculated trickery. Could Elza, indeed, control him?
She must have had much the same thought, for she said with a forcedsmile: "You give me a great deal of power. If you--wish to obey me,you'll set us free--send us all to Washington."
That amused him. "Ah, but I cannot do that."
She gained confidence. "You are willing to be very gracious in thingswhich do not inconvenience you, Tarrano. It is not very impressive."
He looked hurt. "You misinterpret. I will do for you anything I can. Butyou must remember, Lady Elza, that my judgment is better than yours. Iwould not let you lead us into disaster. You are a gentle little woman.Your instincts are toward humane treatment of everyone--toward mercyrather than justice. In all such things, I shall be guided by you.Justice--tempered with mercy. A union very, very beautiful, LadyElza ... But, you see, beyond that--you are wrong. I am a man, and inthe big things I must dominate. It is I who guide, and you who follow.You see that, don't you?"
The sincerity in his voice was unmistakable. And my heart sank as Iwatched Elza. Her gaze fell, and a flush mantled her cheeks. Tarranoadded quietly: "We shall have no difficulty, you and I, Lady Elza. Eachof us a place, and a duty. A destiny together...."
He broke off and rose quickly to his feet. "Enough. I have been weak tosay so much as this."
He turned to leave us, and I became aware of a woman's figure standingin the shadows of
the archway across the room. She started forward asTarrano glanced her way. A Venus woman of the Cold Country. Yet,obviously, one of good birth and breeding. A woman of perhaps 30 years,beautiful in the Venus cast; dressed in the conventional bodicebreast-plates and short skirt, with grey stockings and sandals.
Within the room, she regarded Tarrano silently. There was about her aquiet dignity; she stood with her tall, slim figure drawn to its fullheight. Her pure white hair was coiled upon her head, with a rich metalornament to fasten it. And from it, a mantle of shimmering blue fabrichung down her back.
Tarrano said: "What are you doing up here? I told you to wait below."
Her face showed no emotion. But there was a glitter to her eyes, a glowin their grey depths like _alumite_ in the hydro-flame of a torch.
She said slowly: "Master, I think it would be very correct if you wouldlet me stay here and serve the Lady Elza. I told you that before, butyou would not listen."
Tarrano, with sudden decision, swung toward Elza. "This is the Elta[14]Tara. She was concerned that I should allow you to dwell here alone withthis Jac Hallen, and this traitor from Mars." His tone conveyed infinitecontempt for us.
[Footnote 14: Elta--a term or title denoting rank by birth.]
The woman said quickly: "The Lady Elza would be glad of mycompanionship." She shot a swift glance to Elza. What it was meant toconvey, I could not have said. Perhaps Elza understood it, or thoughtshe did. She spoke up.
"I would like to have you very much, indeed." She added to Tarrano, andthere was on her face a look of feminine guile:
"You, of course, could not refuse me so small a favor? After all yourprotestations----"
He gestured impatiently. "Very well." And he added to Tara: "You willserve the Lady Elza as she directs."
He stalked away into the darkened passage. In the gloom there, hestopped and again faced us; the light from a small blue tube in thereillumined him dimly. He was smiling ironically.
"I shall maintain the instruments for you. The mirrors will show youGeorg and Maida. They are just about arriving at the Mountain Station.Watch them! You will see how far they progress with their wonderfulspeeches."
He left us. We heard his measured tread as he stalked down the towerincline. The barrage about the tower was lifted momentarily as he wentout. Then it came on again, with its glow beyond our casements, and itslow electrical whine.
I was just turning back to the room when a sound behind me made me facesharply about. My heart leaped into my throat. The woman Tara hadproduced from about her person a weapon of some kind. She thought shewas unobserved, but from the angle at which I stood, I saw her. Agleaming metal object was in her hand. And then she launched it--a smallflat disc of metal, thin, and with its circular edge keen as aknife-blade.
Whirling with a very soft hum hardly audible, it left her hand andfloated upward across the room. Circling the casements up near theceiling, and then heading downward straight for Elza! And I saw, too,that the woman was guiding it by a tiny radio-control.
The thing was so unexpected that I stood gaping. But only for aninstant. I saw the deadly whirling knife-disc sailing for Elza.... Itwould strike her ... shear her white throat....
With a shout of horror and anger, I leaped for the woman. But Wolfgar,too, had seen the disc and he went into action quicker than I. The divanwas beside him. He snatched up a pillow; flung it upward at the disc.The soft pillow struck the disc; together, entangled, they fellharmlessly to the floor.
I was upon the woman, snatching the handle of the control-wire from herhand, wrenching its connection loose from her robe. Under my onslaught,she fell; and I kneeled beside her, gripping her while she tore at meand screamed with hysterical, murderous frenzy.